More pharmacist success stories:

Jessica felt like she was reinventing the wheel every time she handled oncology drug requests. Kelley’s oncology program has helped her provide better care at a lower cost.

Kelley’s oncology program helps pharmacists leave the confusion and chaos behind and build a solid foundation for self-directed learning.

OVERVIEW:

Working in managed care, Jessica uses Kelley’s oncology program to develop smart programs for hospital, outpatient, and take home medications, ensuring patients receive the full benefit of treatment at the lowest possible price.

SUMMARY:

Jessica found it confusing and chaotic to fulfill oncology drug prescriptions without a solid foundation. She spent hours buried in references and citations, NCCN guidelines, cancer publications, and FDA approvals. Kelley’s oncology program has increased her knowledge base from 10% to 65%, and empowered her with the confidence to get to 100% on her own.

DETAILS:

Jessica felt like she was reinventing the wheel every time she handled an oncology patient’s drug requests. Kelley’s oncology program has helped her provide better care at a lower cost.

As Senior Clinical Pharmacist at a managed care start-up, Jessica is responsible for managing drug requests from a dizzying assortment of medical centers, large oncology treatment centers, and community clinics. Because oncology is always changing, producing more and more data every day, she often struggled to find the information she needed.

That all ended when she found Kelley’s training. She took a leap of faith and joined the very first cohort of Kelley’s oncology program, where she finally found the structured path to learning she had been looking for.

“Kelley was very good at curating the content so that we could learn something every day without feeling like we were all over the place. She’s professional. She’s personable. She’s very knowledgeable. I was impressed by how much thought she put into creating the program.”

“Accessibility is not hard. It’s only hard because of people. I’ve been impressed with Kelley’s openness to figure out how to create interactive content and discussion formats that are accessible, such as Slack chats and subtitles. Kelley also set the tone for meeting etiquette in the beginning which is helpful for remote participants.”

One of the barriers Jessica faces as a health professional with a disability is a general disregard for accessibility in many medical education and training programs, including continuing education and board certification programs. This largely stems from a lack of awareness among health professionals and professional organizations. Healthcare lags behind other industries in terms of disability inclusion and accessibility. She was happy to find that Kelley was ready and willing to provide notes and closed captioning in the program to offer a unique and effective learning experience.

“Other people may be surprised by how nice and approachable Kelley is. How easy she makes it to learn. I was most surprised that she said ‘Okay, we’ll make it work.’ I’ve had people say ‘I can’t do this for you because I don’t know how. It’s too time-consuming.’ Kelley is forward-thinking. She really tries, and I appreciate that effort.”

For Jessica, the biggest impact of Kelley’s oncology program was the demystification of oncology, instilling in her the confidence to discuss the subject with oncologists.

“Kelley is board certified and did her residency in oncology. That’s my ultimate goal, but it’s hard to attain because it’s so complex and specialized. This class gave me the ability to have dialogues with oncologists. They’re the experts, and now I’m able to say ‘How about these treatments?’, ‘This is also effective’, or ‘Can we try this?’ I’m helping more patients get cancer treatments while minimizing the financial impact.”

What would Jessica say to other pharmacists considering Kelley’s oncology program?

“Be an engaged student. Kelley is a supportive and accommodating teacher, coach, facilitator, content creator, and coordinator, but she can only do so much. Know that oncology is complex, and very difficult to learn. This class breaks down oncology information in a way that’s easy to learn, along with support from Kelley and fellow classmates from different areas of practice. You are not just learning oncology, but you are also gaining insights from pharmacists practicing in traditional and non-traditional paths.”

Jessica Huang, PharmD, BCPS - Managed Care

Kelley’s oncology program provided the foundation Kevin needed to navigate a new role in an ambulatory infusion clinic and improved his communications with a colleague.

Kelley’s oncology program provides the foundation to communicate better with colleagues and providers, helping pharmacists zero in on the best information.

OVERVIEW:

Left to his own devices, Kevin was struggling to find the information he needed to navigate a new role in an ambulatory infusion clinic. Kelley’s oncology program helped Kevin take control of his self-directed learning curve.

SUMMARY:

Kevin found it difficult to get good information in his new ambulatory clinic role. He wasn’t making progress on his own or getting useful answers from a colleague. Kelley’s oncology program provided the knowledge Kevin needed to ask the right questions and feel confident he was getting the right answers.

DETAILS:

Kelley’s oncology program provided the foundation Kevin needed to navigate his new role in an ambulatory infusion clinic and improved his communications with a territorial colleague.

Working in an infusion clinic was so different from anything Kevin had previously done as a pharmacist; the “unknown unknowns” felt like a minefield. To make matters worse, his colleague had been working alone for nearly three decades and was not always forthcoming with the information Kevin needed.

“I was wheel spinning. It wasn’t even two steps forward, one step back. I felt like I was doing wild goose chases down a blind alley. I would ask questions and get non-answers, and I didn’t know enough to realize it. My knowledge base is so much better now than when I started. I’m able to follow up with more questions and hold his feet to the fire.”

Responding to questions from colleagues, providers, and nurses, Kevin feels much more confident he won’t be left standing and scratching his head. He knows where to find the answers.

Kevin tried working through the resources available from the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) and the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP). He found it difficult to make any headway because the level of assumed knowledge is so high. So he started looking for a pathway to guided learning, to get him to where he needed to be to digest the best available information.

“I felt like I wasn’t making any progress in terms of general knowledge and overall competence on the job. Since I’ve been doing this program, Kelley’s opened me up to some resources I didn’t know existed. A little bit of guided help in terms of where to look and what to study has been really helpful. I’m getting better information because I’m learning to ask the right questions.”

What would Kevin say to other pharmacists considering Kelley’s oncology program?

“I would say that what Kelley offers is worthwhile. This is a ton of information that she’s done a nice job of breaking down into small parts to make that process easier. There are a lot of things to learn, so strap your helmet on tight!”

Kevin - Community Ambulatory Cancer Center

 Here’s how the ELO program stacks up against other curated oncology content